What is Waldorf Education?

Introduction to Waldorf Education

Waldorf Steiner Education focuses on the needs of the growing child. It transforms education into an art that educates the child - head, heart and hands.

Developed by Austrian philosopher-scientist Rudolf Steiner, it is the fastest growing holistic schooling system worldwide with more than 1,000 independent schools, 2,000 kindergartens and 600 centers for special needs in over 60 countries across Europe, the Americas, Asia and Africa.

Receive the children with reverence; Educate them with love;let them go forth in freedom.Rudolf Steiner

Why Waldorf Education How does it benefit your child?

Waldorf Education developed by Rudolf Steiner in 1919 is a humanistic approach to pedagogy. It is based on the developmental needs of the growing child.

Waldorf Education is non-sectarian and non-denominational. It focuses on fostering a child’s natural creativity and holistic development. Lessons are designed for age-appropriate learning without the use of digital technology/media. Pictorial and artistic elements fuse with academic learning in lively, dynamic experiential ways to build a child’s motivation from within. Each child’s enthusiasm for lifelong learning and their ability to understand self and relate to the world are thus nurtured without the need and pressure of competition.

Above all, Waldorf Education seeks to be a healing education - allowing the child to thrive physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually, enabling them to find freedom in learning, purpose in life, healthy self-awareness, concern for others and respect for the world.

With nearly a century of history and evolution, there are many independent Waldorf School and Waldorf-based state schools, charter schools and training academies, research institutes, universities, and homte-schooling environments around the world.

What is the curriculum like?

Waldorf Education approaches all aspects of schooling in a unique and comprehensive way. The curriculum is designed to meet the various stages of child development.

Contents are conducted creatively by Waldorf teachers to complement a child’s imaginative learning of English, Mathematics, Nature Sciences and Form Drawing. These are integrated with arts, storytelling, music, movement and outdoor education.

Lessons are taught in blocks of 3 to 4 weeks. This enables a child to focus intensively on one subject at a time. Repetitive teaching with evolving content deepens a child’s learning and understanding.

Artistic and Movement Lessons are held mostly in the afternoons. These include visual art, handwork, foreign languages, music & movement, speech & drama, and sports & games.

The Waldorf Teacher

Waldorf teachers are dedicated to generating an inner enthusiasm for learning; they are interested in the child as an individual. They teach in a way that furthers the overall growth of the child through what they bring - including who they are as human beings.

A Waldorf teacher focuses on her self-development because the thoughts, attitudes and imagination of the adult who cares for the child affects the child’s learning. The teacher’s directed attention thus creates an atmosphere of freedom in which each child’s individuality can be active. The child then experiences the inner attitude - the devotion, care, sense of purpose, focus, and creative spirit of the adult as well.

THE WALDORF STEINER SCHOOL LIMITED

Waldorf Steiner School currently provides programs in Singapore based on Rudolf Steiner's education methods that embrace the careful and conscious study of children and the comprehensive understanding of the human being through all stages of development.